FAQ

General Questions

Where IS the auction?
How does the auction work?
What can I sell there?
How much is my game worth?
Should I sell my stuff in batches or just piece-by-piece?

Where IS the auction?

At Gen Con Indy it is in the Marriott Hotel, on the 2nd floor

At other conventions, please check their website for the room location.

How Does the Auction Work?

While there are similarities among live gave auctions, they all have their own little differences. For a description of how Gen Con works refer to this page. For other auctions, you should read up on their procedures on their site.

What can I sell there?

A game auction can include everything in hobby gaming. In addition to various types of games, you may see accessories, spare parts, rulebooks, adventures, figures, paints, collectible cards, video games, computer games, and more. Related items such as Star Trek and Star Wars memorabilia, toys, artworks, and of course comic books can be a part of a game auction also. As a general rule they do not accept food or living beings of any sort, Humanoid or otherwise.

Gen Con has additional restrictions:

No Weapons (boffers are OK)
No Porn
No Mildewed Items

Be sure to check the rules at the auction you are attending.

How Much is it Worth?

We try to get you the best price for your stuff, but we cannot affect the fair market by offering opinions like this in advance. Value comes from many factors, including condition, packaging, regional price differences, and others. Independent price guides are available for some categories, and you can often find recent records on other web sites including ebay and boardgamegeek.

Should I sell my stuff in batches or just piece-by-piece?

Depends on the stuff. At the desk where you check in at the auction you’ll find expert collectors who will offer advice like this. (You may have a valuable collectible and not even realize it!) If you’re sure that some items are all common and related, it makes sense to group them. Some things should not be batched, such as unrelated items (a family game, a wargame, and a roleplaying piece), and games of higher value that will likely do better individually.

How can I register my items in advance? Can I get item tags?

For the Gen Con auction you can pre-register your items starting at the Pre-Registration Page.

After entering the items, print the tags and attach them to the items. Bring them to the convention and drop them off at the auction room during any of the listed times.

How long do I have to pre-register?

For the Gen Con Auction pre-registration now has multiple deadlines. All deadlines close at midnight Eastern Time. Try to enter your items early so you aren’t in a rush the last day! The closing dates for this year’s pre-registration can be seen on the Overview Page

How long can the description be?

The description can be up to 2000 characters long. But all the text should be simple text. Some people have been copying long game descriptions from other sites and pasting them in. Occasionally special characters will mess up the item tag.

How do I fix something I mess up?

Just find the item in the list and click on the item tag #. This will allow you to change anything you need to about the item. If you’ve already printed the tag make sure to destroy the original and print a new one!

How do I delete an item?

Just ignore it. You won’t be charged for any tags that you don’t use. If you prefer, edit the tag and change the item to the word “DELETED”, that way you can more easily keep track of items you should have when you arrive at the convention.

Can I pay in advance for my seller card & item tags? (Gen Con auction only)

No, and we have no plans to allow this. You will pay for these items when you arrive at the convention.

Any advice on how to place my tags on the item?

To avoid damage to items and assist the staff with check-out, here are some suggestions on attaching tags to items.

Scotch tape or low-tack tape should be used.
Anything still in shrinkwrap can have the tag taped on anyplace.
Magazine bags are recommended. Any item that will fit in one should be placed inside, and the tag taped to the outside.
Books with slick covers (Palladium, for example) can have the tag taped on the cover. Please use scotch tape or low-tack tape for these.
Boxed items or delicate books can have a strong rubber band or length of string put around it. Place the tag under the band/string, and then put a piece of tape over it onto the tag. This keeps the tape off the item, avoiding damage.

When will things be sold? Are they in categories?

Most game auctions do schedule the live auction using categories.

The schedule and the categories used varies by the auction and what’s submitted. Tentative schedules may be available on the auction website in advance, but always watch for on-site changes (posted at the physical auction site).

What’s the difference between the Stage and the Store?

The fee to put items into live auction is slightly more than putting them in the consignment store. However, putting an item into live auction doesn’t guarantee a higher price, and sometimes you will get a lower price.

If you have a good idea of the value of an item, or it is a less desired item, then it is best to put that in the consignment store, putting your prices starting at the top price, and then lower prices for subsequent days. Make the price for the last day a price you would take as the lowest price rather than have to take the item home.

If putting the item in the live auction, it is often best to put it at $1.00 with no reserve. It is the job of the auctioneers to get the best price, and it is easier to get people to start low and go up in price, rather than start at a higher price. Sometimes, if two identical items are put in, one at $20 to start and the other at $1 to start, the one that started at $1 goes for more because more people had time to get involved in the bidding.

If my items don’t get bids on stage, will you put them into the store for me? (Gen Con auction only)

Sure, just click “Allow Store” in the item registration screen. If checked, and that item does not sell on stage, it will be moved automatically to the store and get a second chance at being sold! The sale price in the consignment store will be your reserve.

If you would prefer the item NOT go to the store, just leave that box unchecked when you are creating that item tag. You will see a NO STORE flag on the item tag when it is printed. If a “No Store” item happens to not sell when it crosses the stage, the item will simply be set aside and returned to you at Sunday pick-up.

Note that high-value and fragile items are not moved to the store.

Will my items be in a Collector session? (Gen Con auction only)

We have experts on staff who will decide which items are placed in our collector’s session. We handle thousands of games at each auction and we’ve been doing this for many years, so we’re pretty good at identifying collectibles. Among our staff members are experts who have seen and played virtually every game known to man. Those experts separate the collectibles from all the rest. Feel free to call attention to your collectible in the item description…but if something isn’t collectible we’ll know it, and it’ll get put in the appropriate time slot.

Can I look at stuff before it’s sold? (Gen Con auction only)

There is no pre-auction inspection period, due to the nature of the event; we get huge amounts of stuff coming in over a 3-day period. But we know that some things you just HAVE to see. Items such as Painted miniatures and ultra-rare collectibles are frequently displayed in showcases, and other special items are often displayed for a short time. And we offer a guarantee that you won’t find elsewhere: when you pay for an item, you can (and SHOULD) check to be sure it’s exactly as described. If it’s not, you can cancel the sale, and we’ll change the description accordingly and put it back up. (But you can’t just change your mind; if it IS what was described, you are required to pay what you bid. That’s a legal thing.)

Can I bid on stuff without being there? I’d rather be gaming…

Yes, you can. This procedure is called “Proxy Bidding”. You can’t do this for common items, or on items entered into our charity auction, but you can for almost any collectible or special item. First have a staff member bring the item for your inspection (we do the handling, you do the examining). Then show your bidder card and tell us your maximum bid for the item. The information is written on the item tag in a hidden place, and your bid will be part of the action when the item comes up. Your final bid price is typically $1 more than the last “live” bid (sometimes more for high-priced items), so you may get the item for at lot less than your Proxy (maximum) bid. Note that you will be required to open a tab to guarantee your bid, so have a credit or debit card, or cash deposit, handy if you plan on Proxy bidding. While the Gen Con auction allows Proxy Bidding, not all auctions do – check with the auctioneer to make sure.

Can I get money as soon as my stuff sells? (Gen Con auction only)

In our unique Advance Partial Payout system we start paying sellers on Thursday. If your items have sold, you can pick up the cash right away and go hit the dealer room. If your items haven’t sold yet, of course you can’t get paid yet; check back later.

Can someone else pick up my money for me? (Gen Con auction only)

No, and we require photo ID when consignors pick up their payouts. Within 7 days after the convention we mail out checks to everyone who hasn’t picked up their money, so if you get tied up, don’t worry about it.

What about my stuff that didn’t sell? (Gen Con auction only)

In general, all items not picked up by 2pm local time on Sunday of the convention become auction property, and may be taken by auction volunteers, thrown away, or eaten. You cannot pick up items before 10am Sunday, because there are just too many items we’d have to search to find yours. But although nobody else can pick up your money, someone else CAN pick up your leftovers: they’ll need your original seller card AND a hand-written signed note from you giving them permission to do this –OR if you can, stop by and pre-arrange who will pick up your stuff. If you make arrangements with us before Sunday, your leftovers can be stored or mailed to you, but those options are expensive, and you won’t like them. Trust me.